Who's Your Daddy?
by McPerfect
Summary: Addison leaves Seattle and returns six years later with a six year old daughter who has three possible dads. full summary inside, because it's not wanting to fit. mystery pairs, except merder and dizzie and if you know me, you can probably figure them out
1. Is She?

**a/n: i'm not going to say that i don't need another story, even though it's true.**

**summary: in the month before addison leaves for seattle she manages to sleep with derek, mark, and alex. six years later, addison returns to seattle, with a five, nearly six, year old daughter with no idea who the father is. i'm not going to tell you pairings, because that would kind of ruin the surprise. but i will tell you two things. there's going to be a little merder, even though i can't write them all that well. and the second thing is that DENNY IS ALIVE, that one's kind of important. the rest you'll just have to find out for yourself.**

**disclaimer: not mine, don't sue.**

* * *

It was a mistake. A drunken mistake that would never happen again. That was the one thing they agreed on. They were divorced and divorced people didn't sleep together. They would go back to barely speaking to each other until Addison left Seattle in a month. Then they'd never have to see each other again and this could all be left behind and forgotten.

"Are you going to tell Meredith?" Addison asked, gritting her teeth as she tried to sit up and grab her clothes and the full effect of her hangover washed over her.

"I don't know, Addison, I don't know," he replied, burying his head in his hands.

"Well, good luck with that. Um, I'll see you at work," she said awkwardly as she buttoned the last button on her blouse and rushed out the door.

Alex Karev. The reason she had slept with her ex-husband. Well, not directly, but he was the reason she had been drinking, which in turn was the reason she had slept with her ex-husband.

She had fallen for her intern and she had fallen hard. It was a really bad thing. Probably one of the worst things she could possibly do. But it had happened. And now she couldn't get through an hour without thinking about him at least once.

She was fairly sure he didn't feel the same way. But finally Callie wore her down with all her pep talks and threats and she walked up and pulled him into an on call room and kissed him, which resulted in a locked door and some very messy hair among other things.

She avoided him for days after that. And when she finally did stop avoiding him, he acted like an ass. So there was never even a question of her staying for him. He had told her so.

Following Alex's rejection, she had found herself in Mark's arms once again. It was really a stupid thing to do and she knew that would probably hate herself for weeks afterwards, but she ended up there anyways. She always did. Well, at least if everything else in her life was falling apart, she could always have some hot sex. Because she knew she had Mark wrapped around her little finger as long as she resisted. The second she gave in, he got bored. So there was never any question of staying for him either. Not wanting to deal with him trying to talk her into staying, she snuck out while he was sleeping.

Two days later, and without another word to him, she left Seattle.

_6 years later…_

She stared up at the building. After seven years of zero contact with virtually no one in Seattle, she was back for a consult. Why had she agreed to come here? Why had she agreed to come and do this for her ex-husband? Because he had done that stupid whiny thing that he knew would make her do anything to get him to shut up.

She took a deep breath and tried to move. She couldn't do it. She could not move any closer to the hospital. A building should not have had this much power over her, but it did.

A small hand sliding into her got her attention. She smiled down at the little girl to whom the hand belonged. "Are we going in, Mommy?"

"Yeah, sweetie, Mommy just needs a second, okay?" Addison said and ruffled her daughter's auburn hair that was in two braids.

"Okay… Second's up! Let's go!" The five year old began to try to drag her mother in.

"Coming!" Addison laughed and allowed herself to be pulled along.

"Addison!" Derek, the new Chief, greeted her as they walked in. He looked surprised to see the little girl clinging to her arm. "And Co."

"Derek, this is Aiden, my daughter. Aiden, this is my friend Derek."

"Hey, pretty girl," Derek said, crouching down so his blue eyes were level with Aiden's hazel ones. "How old are you?"

"I'm five years old and eleven months," Aiden announced with authority. "So I'm almost six. Mommy says that for my birthday we can do _anything_ I want. I want to go to Disneyland but Mommy says that Disneyland's too far away, so I have to pick something else."

"That's… that's nice." Derek had clearly been expecting an answer closer to four because his face blanched a little. He looked up at Addison who pretended not to notice his glance. Then he scanned her fingers, which were bare of rings. "Is she-?" he asked quietly.

Addison looked a little ashamed. "I-I don't know. I'm sorry, Derek. I didn't want to tell you, because I don't know and I didn't want you to get all riled up about it and I never knew if you ended up telling Meredith or not."

"I never did."

"Oh- okay."

They sat in silence for a moment until a very pregnant Meredith waddled up and exclaimed, "Addison!"

"You're pregnant," Addison blurted before she could censor herself. "I'm sorry. Hi, Meredith. How are you?"

"Fat. Me and Derek's second," Meredith said proudly, waving her left hand to show her rings. "Little girl. Theresa. Her older brother, Matt, is two."

Addison tried to look interested as Meredith babbled on, not noticing the little girl that was holding fast to Addison's hand. She finally managed to tear herself away from whatever she was talking about and ask who the girl was. "This is my daughter Aiden," Addison said. "She's five."

"Almost six!" Aiden protested.

"Hi, sweetie, I'm Meredith."

Aiden giggled. "You're fat."

Addison looked mortified. "I am so sorry, we're still trying to work on that. She says whatever comes into her head. I'm so sorry. Aiden, say you're sorry."

"It's not a problem. The kid speaks the truth."

"Sorry," Aiden mumbled.

Derek had been watching the entire scene in amusement but he saw Meredith scan Addison's fingers for rings and knowing that would bring up the topic of Aiden's father, he quickly said something about needing to get Addison up to meet a patient or something. Then he dragged mother and daughter away towards his office. On the way they ran into Mark.

He looked shocked and stopped dead in his tracks. "You didn't tell me she was coming back," he accused Derek the second he stopped staring.

"And have you raising hell? No thanks."

"What, Mark, not happy to see me?" Addison deadpanned. It didn't surprise her that he was mad, he was no doubt remembering that she had snuck out and then ignored him. It was six years ago, but Mark Sloane could hold a grudge longer than anyone she knew. What did surprise her was the way Mark and Derek were standing in the same room and not tearing each other apart.

"Who's the mini-me?" Mark deftly avoided the question. The observation was true; Aiden did look a lot like Addison. Her auburn hair was closer to brown than Addison's and her eyes were hazel, but she had the same strong facial features, even if they were covered in baby fat. She was obviously going to look almost exactly like her mother.

"Aiden, this is Mark, Mark, the mini-me's my daughter Aiden. She's five."

"I'm _actually_ five years old and eleven months," Aiden informed him. "So I'm almost six."

Mark stopped at that and seemed to be doing some calculation in his head, coming to the conclusion that Derek had reached. "Holy sh-"

"Shh!" Addison cut him off before he could say the dreaded "s word" around her daughter.

"Is she-?" Mark said, exactly as Derek had said before him. Addison could tell that she was going to get tired of this question very quickly.

"I don't know, Mark, I just don't know."

"You mean you and he…" Derek deliberately trailed off, letting his meaning be known by the adults in the conversation but leaving Aiden in the dark.

"Yes," Addison sighed. "Almost six years ago, obviously, and never again. Please just leave it alone?"

"You should go meet the neonatal staff," Derek suggested. Addison smiled gratefully.

"Okay. You know, I don't need an escort, I think I remember my way around." With another smile she grabbed her daughter's hand and they walked off.

"Alex Karev," Addison smiled tersely as she met her ex-fling. "Neonatal, huh? Guess I did something right after all."

"Shut up. It's good to see you again, Dr. Montgomery. Is it still Montgomery?"

"It's still Montgomery. You know, you're much politer than the last time we talked. Then again, the last time we talked, you were yelling at me. I suppose that we're about equals now. You can call me Addison." She didn't really want to give him permission to call her by her first name, but it just slipped out.

"I'm really sorry about that, by the way. It was stupid. And I'd say you can call me Alex, but you've had that right and you're probably going to call me Karev anyways." He noticed Aiden trying to hide behind her mother, so he knelt down and pulled a lollipop out from behind her ear, a trick he had learned to calm kids down and keep them occupied, and handed it to her. Aiden stared at him adoringly. "I'm Alex, what's your name?"

"Aiden Alexandra Forbes Montgomery."

If Alex noticed how close Aiden's middle name was to his first, he didn't show it, he just whistled appreciatively, "Long name." He looked up at her mother. "How old's she?"

"She's going to be six in three weeks." Addison saw the look that showed Alex had figured out that Aiden was the right age to be his daughter and decided to cut him off at the pass. "Before you say anything, I know what you're thinking and I don't know. I'd tell you if I knew, but I don't."

"Who else did you sleep with?" Alex asked, not spitefully or jealously, just genuinely curious.

"Mark and… this other guy."

"Nice going, Addison. I've got to say, you've certainly dug yourself in deep."

"I know! I know."

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**so there's the first chapter. want to tell me what you think?**


	2. You Have A Thing

**a/n: so here's the next chapter! yay! i really don't have that much to say**

**-generic disclaimer-**

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"So where have you been all this time?" Alex asked as he, Addison, and Aiden walked down the hallway. Aiden was in the middle, sucking contentedly on her lollipop and clinging to her mother, throwing sidelong glances at Alex every once in awhile.

"We were in L.A. for awhile, until maybe three years ago and then we moved to New York."

"So you're back in New York? How long are you staying out here?"

"I don't know. This place is like a black hole. We'll probably end up moving here," Addison laughed.

"Probably," Alex agreed. "Hey, tonight do you want to go grab something to eat? Sort of a 'welcome back, sorry in advance about all the crap everyone's going to give you' dinner?"

"With Aiden?"

"She can even choose where we go."

"Oh, God, don't let her do that, we'll end up at McDonalds!"

"Fine, her mom can then."

"Is that diner still open? The fifties throwback one? A couple blocks away? With the really good fries?"

"Lucy's. Still open," Alex informed her. His pager went off and he checked it. "Gotta go. I get off at eight. See you then?"

"Okay. Yeah, see you then," Addison consented.

"Bye Alex!" Aiden waved enthusiastically. As he walked off she turned to her mother and told her, "He's nice, I like him best."

**_GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA_**

Aiden and Addison were walking through the hallways of the maternity ward when Addison dropped Aiden's hand for one second, to grab the chart of her patient. She looked down at it and, without thinking, began to walk away. Aiden tried desperately to keep up, but her mother's long legs made it nearly impossible to keep up with her stride, even when Aiden wasn't trying to dodge the many nurses who didn't register the small five year old running. Aiden stopped to catch her breath and when she looked up, her mother was gone. She stood there, looking around, for a couple minutes, dodging the people who were too busy to notice her. Finally she burst into tears.

**_GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA_**

Addison glanced up from her chart and looked around for her daughter, only to see that she wasn't there. She started to panic and nearly ran off in the direction she came, asking everyone she saw if they had seen a five year old with red hair. No one had or no one had noticed.

**_GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA_**

Aiden was standing in the hallway, crying quietly, when a pretty lady with blond hair and a white lab coat knelt down and asked what was wrong. "M-my mommy. I can't find my mommy!" Aiden sobbed.

"Do you know what room she was in?" Aiden shook her head. "Is she in surgery?"

"No, she was just walking and then- then she wasn't there!" Aiden wailed.

"Do you know which way she went?" Aiden pointed. "Don't worry, sweetie, we'll find her." Aiden nodded as the lady grabbed her hand. "What's your name?"

"A- Aiden," she sniffled, scouring the hallway for a glimpse of her mother's stilettos.

"Hi, Aiden, I'm Izzie."

**_GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA_**

Addison could feel the terror rising up in her throat as her eyes threatened to spill over. She hadn't been searching for ten minutes, but the hospital was humongous and there were tons of places a five year old could hide. She spotted a familiar face coming out of a room. "Alex! Have you seen Aiden? Please tell me you have!" Alex shook his head slowly. "Crap!" Addison buried her face in her hands.

"Addison? What's wrong? Did you lose Aiden?" Alex asked.

"Obviously," she snapped, glaring at him. Her face softened. "I looked down at my chart for _one second_ and I look up and she's gone! And I don't know where to begin to look for her and I'm just-" she broke off abruptly as tears started to run down her face. "I'm scared," she admitted.

Alex stood there a little awkwardly. Was he supposed to hug her or something? They didn't really know each other that well so he settled for laying a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. Addison. Look at me," he ordered and moved his hand from her shoulder to cup her chin in his hand, forcing her to do as he said. "We're going to find her. She couldn't have gone far, her legs are tiny." Addison nodded. "Come on, let's start looking."

They turned the corner and continued to look. Five minutes later, the hallway was ringing with a little girl's voice yelling "Mommy!" Addison looked around and saw Aiden struggling out of a shocked Izzie's grip and rushing towards her. She knelt down just in time for Aiden to fling herself into her open arms. "I was so scared, Mommy! You were walking fast and then I stopped and then I couldn't find you. And then Izzie found me and we came looking for you and now we found you!"

Addison smiled. "Looks like Dr. Stevens took very good care of you," she said. She looked up and smiled gratefully at Izzie. "Thank you so much. I was so worried."

Izzie looked stunned. "She's… she's yours?" Addison nodded. "Oh. Oh. Um, yeah, it was no problem. And, um, it's Duquette now."

"Huh?"

"Izzie Duquette," Izzie said, pointing at herself.

"You and Denny!" Addison exclaimed, putting two and two together, remembering the scandalous engagement. "You made it through all the red tape."

"We did. It helps that he's rarely ever a patient anymore. Actually, we have a little girl about Aiden's age. Her name's Amaryllis but she goes by Amaryl, and will probably hate us later in life for naming her Amaryllis."

"I think it's pretty."

"Thanks."

"Mommy," Aiden tugged at her mother's skirt. "Alex says we're going out to dinner tonight. Can I get a milkshake?"

Addison laughed. "You can get a milkshake."

"Yay!"

Izzie shot Alex a very pointed look. "You're going out to dinner?"

"Yeah. So?" Alex asked.

Izzie looked at Addison. "Never mind, I'll talk to you later."

"What are you talking about?" Addison inquired. "What is she talking about?"

"It's nothing," Izzie quickly assured her. "Nothing at all."

**_GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA_**

Izzie and Alex were walking down the hall in silence when Izzie finally burst. "I thought you weren't going to start this again!"

Alex looked surprised. "Start what?"

"The Addison Thing again!" She gave the word thing a definite capital T.

"What thing?"

"Alex. The week after she left you were the meanest, most miserable person ever. You have a Thing for her!"

"I don't have a thing for her."

"You had a Thing for her. And it never went away."

"I don't have a thing for her."

"But you had a Thing for her?"

"Will you go away if I say yes?"

Izzie shrugged. "Sure."

"Then yes, okay? At one point in time I had a Thing for her. Happy? Now go away."

With another shrug, Izzie walked away. But over her shoulder she called, "You still have a Thing!"

"I do not still have a Thing!"

**_GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA_**

Eight o'clock rolled around and Addison and Aiden were waiting in front of the hospital, waiting for Alex. Five minutes later, he came walking out of the hospital. "Sorry I'm late," he apologized. "Do you want to walk? It's not far and it'll save gas."

"Only by five minutes, and sure," Addison said. She was just amazed that he had shown up at all. It was surprising that he would want to go out to dinner with a woman he had once slept with and a kid who may or may not be his. Then again, Alex Karev had always surprised her. Like now. She watched as he slowly coaxed her daughter away from her side. Slowly, Aiden released the death grip she had on Addison's hand and reached for Alex's. No one had ever been able to do that before. It was a little unnerving. "Stealing my daughter?" she asked Alex with a smile.

"I'm not stealing her. She came willingly."

"So you _are_ trying to steal my daughter."

"Hey, she might be mine too. It wouldn't be stealing then. You never know." He was right, of course. There was a chance that Aiden was his daughter.

There was really nothing Addison could say to that, and so they walked in what would have been silence if Aiden hadn't been babbling away, swinging from her mother and Alex's hands. They walked into the diner and were promptly seated in a booth. Aiden loved this fact and bounced up and down excitedly. "Mommy? Can I get a milkshake? You said I could get a milkshake!"

"After dinner, sweetie."

"So I can get a milkshake?"

Addison chuckled. "You can get a milkshake."

"Yay!"

"What do you want for dinner?" Alex asked the little girl.

"A milkshake!"

"Sweetie, dinner, as in food. You can have a milkshake afterwards," Addison explained.

"Chicken fingers?"

"Chicken fingers are good," Addison agreed.

The dinner went well. Never was there a lull in the conversation, and Addison could see Aiden warm up to Alex more and more. Aiden got her beloved milkshake and Alex insisted on paying, even though Addison was still making more money than him. When they got up to leave, Aiden grabbed both of the adults' hands and beamed up at them. "Mommy?" she asked.

"Uh-huh?"

"Can Alex come to my birthday party?"

Addison glanced over at Alex and he nodded his head slightly with a smile on his face. "Alex can come to your birthday party. Whenever that is."

"My birthday's in three weeks."

"I know, honey, believe me, I know."

As they walked Aiden got more and more tired and eventually had to be carried. But it wasn't Addison who picked her up, it was Alex. "Not a big deal," he said. "I got her. She's tired, you're probably tired… not a big deal."

"She loves you already, you know," Addison told him. The evening had reinforced her hope that Alex was Aiden's dad.

"She's cute. You did a good job. You know, raising her, I mean."

"Thanks. Sometimes I'm afraid I messed her up by not figuring out who her dad is. Kids should have a dad, you know."

"You didn't mess her up. She's a great kid."

They reached Addison's car and kind of just stood there, staring at each other. "Um, I should, I should go," Addison said.

Aiden's head suddenly popped up. "Is Alex coming back to the hotel with us, Mommy?"

"No, Aidie, he's not."

"Why not?"

"Because he has to go home."

Aiden nodded seriously. "Okay." Then she stretched up and kissed Alex on the cheek. "Night, Alex."

"Night, Aiden," he said and gave her a kiss on the cheek and handed her over to her mother.

"You can call me Aidie," Aiden announced. "That's what my mommy calls me."

Addison looked impressed. "She only lets her favorite people call her that. How'd you win her over in one day?"

"Probably the lollipop," Alex joked.

"You're right, it had nothing to do with you, it was probably the lollipop," Addison agreed.

"Yep. Well, night, Aidie, night, Addison," he said and leaned in to peck Addison on the cheek. The movement startled Addison, however, who turned her head so the kiss landed squarely on her mouth. For just one millisecond they stayed like that, kissing with Aiden squashed between them and then they realized what was happening and they both jerked back quickly. "Sorry," he apologized.

"No, no, um, totally my fault. Um, I'll, um see you, um, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, um, yeah."

"Okay then."

"Okay."

Alex stood there as Addison buckled Aiden into her car seat and watched them drive off, marveling at how soft Addison's lips were.

* * *

**and there you have it. want to tell me what you thought?**

**-Lauren**


	3. It Doesn't Have To Mean Anything

**a/n: this is short and my last update for at least a week. i'm going on vacation, which is gonna be totally fun, but i have no internet access, so therefore no updates. so i'm sorry that this is so short, but i wanted to put something on before i left.**

**-general disclaimer-**

* * *

For a week Addison successfully managed to avoid Alex. She began spending more time with Izzie, arranging play dates for Amaryl and Aiden, who had immediately hit it off, and gossiping.

One day Izzie and Addison were dropping off Amaryl and Aiden at the hospital's daycare center, something that Izzie and Bailey had worked together to get started once Izzie had found out she was pregnant. Amaryl and Aiden immediately ran off to their "clubhouse" which was really the playhouse that they had claimed as their own. "They're so cute," Addison commented as they watched their little girls run off.

"Amaryl really likes Aiden. She's nearly all we hear about at home. 'Aiden and I did this, Aiden and I did that'," Izzie said, mimicking her daughter's voice.

"Aiden does the same thing. Um, Aiden's birthday's coming up and I'm throwing her a party and it looks like we'll be here. So, um, I was wondering, do you and Denny want to bring Amaryl and maybe stick around?"

"We'd love to," Izzie replied, but she seemed to be looking at something over Addison's shoulder. "And can I just say that I'm sorry?"

"Huh?"

"I'm a distraction."

"_What_? What are you distracting me from?"

"Me," Alex said from behind her. "I figured the only way you'd talk to me was if there was no escape. Which there's not. We need to talk."

"Alex, not now, I have to-"

"You have to what? You don't have any surgeries until later, I checked the board. You have some time. Come on. We'll go get coffee or something. It's either now or in the O.R. and I don't think you'd want that."

"Are you blackmailing me?"

"Maybe. If that's what it takes."

Addison sighed. "Fine, Karev, we can talk."

"I'm just going to go… somewhere that's not here," Izzie muttered and walked away quickly.

"What?" Addison asked when they were alone.

"Look, we kissed. So what? It's not a big deal, it only means something if we make it mean something."

"I have to… I have to check on a patient," Addison lied, backing away slowly.

Alex gently grabbed her wrist. "No you don't. That kiss doesn't have to mean anything. We can just forget it and go back to being friends. We are friends, right?" Addison nodded. "Then can we just forget it?" Addison nodded again. "Good."

"Good," Addison repeated. And then she realized that Alex was still holding her wrist. "Um, can I have that back?" she asked, glancing down at her wrist.

"Right, sorry. Here," he said, releasing her. The skin where he had touched her tingled, but she told herself that it was the release of pressure that made it do that.

"Thanks. Well, um, I have to go. Paperwork. Hate it. Um, yeah. So, um, bye."

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

Slowly, days turned into weeks, and suddenly it was Aiden's birthday and Addison still didn't have anything planned. So she invited Alex, Izzie, Denny, and Amaryl out to dinner as a substitute.

Izzie and Addison stood in front of the hospital, watching their girls run around, laughing hysterically, and waiting for Alex and Denny to show up. Denny arrived first. "Hey, Iz," he said, giving her a kiss. "Dr. Montgomery."

"Addison, it's Addison."

"Daddy!" Amaryl called as she ran over to her dad. He bent down and picked her up.

"Hey, Am, who's your friend?"

"Daddy, this is my bestest friend Aiden."

"I'm going to take a wild stab, and guess that she's yours?" Denny asked Addison, who nodded. "She looks exactly like you. Where's the dad?"

"Denny! Don't you pay any attention at all? Remember, I told you _not_ to bring that up!" Izzie exclaimed.

"No. I really don't. Sorry, Iz. I'll pay attention next time," he apologized, sending her an over-exaggerated pleading look.

Izzie laughed. "No you won't. I suppose I should be used to this by now."

"You'd think after six years of marriage, yeah, you would," Denny replied.

The hostess appeared, interrupting their conversation. "Addison, party of six?" she said.

"That's us," Addison told the girl.

They were seated and their waiter promptly appeared to take their drink orders. There was no sign of Alex, but when Aiden worried, Addison and Izzie quickly laid her fears to rest, knowing that a surgeon's life was hectic. They ordered appetizers and still no sign of Alex. Addison started to feel just a twinge of worry, but ignored it. The waiter came back with their appetizers and asked if they were ready to order. They decided to wait a little longer. Eventually they had to order.

"This isn't like Alex," Izzie said, "He usually calls or pages or something."

"Should we be worried?" Addison asked.

"I don't know. It's weird. He's really good about being where he said he'd be. I'm thinking that we might be okay if we start worrying."

Those were not helpful words to Addison, who had already been worrying and whose internal state now reached panic. She managed to sit still and not do anything stupid but there was only one thought running through her head and that was "Where the hell is Alex?"

* * *

**i would love to come back and have my inbox flooded with reviews. pretty please?**

**-Lauren**


	4. That Is One Big Box

**a/n: look! i'm alive! sorry, but we started school last week and i was up until eleven every night trying to finish and i started when i got home. i had no time to write. but i've had copious amounts of time this weekend and so i got this written. which you will probably hate me for, since i made you wait like, what?, three weeks for this lame thing. but i've got the next chapter written, because i've had it written for forever. it was actually like the first thing i wrote about the story... anyways...**

**disclaimer: it's not mine**

* * *

"Mommy, where's Alex?" Aiden asked. "He said he'd come. He promised me."

"I know he did, Aidie, but I don't know where he is," Addison answered, managing to keep calm, but freaking out internally.

Just then an unharmed Alex came rushing through the door. "Sorry I'm late," he apologized as he ran to the table. Everyone looked at him, wanting an explanation as to why he was arriving at the same time the entrées were. "I got pulled into Mrs. Carter's c-section and then traffic was hell, I mean heck," he corrected himself with a quick glance at the six year olds sitting at the table. "It was heck getting over here. Have you ever tried to cross town at rush hour? If not, I would suggest avoiding it."

"But you're okay? Not abducted by aliens or anything?" Izzie asked.

"I'm fine," he answered and sat in the chair next to Addison.

"I'm glad that you're okay," Addison told him. And then she hit him.

"Ow! What the hell- heck was that for?"

"For worrying me- us half to death! I- we were starting to get scared that you were in an accident or something. And I had no idea what to tell Aiden because she was starting to freak out. So that's for that. And for not calling."

"I'm sorry, guys, I did try, but the battery on my pager died and I didn't bring my phone," Alex explained.

"It's okay, Alex," Aiden spoke up. "Didja bring me a present?"

Addison looked humiliated. "Aidie," she groaned. "Must you be so greedy?"

Alex laughed. "It's okay. And as a matter of fact, I did, but it's in my car."

"Ooh! Can we go get it? Can we, can we, can we?" Aiden was bouncing up and down in her seat in excitement.

"Finish your dinner first," Addison ordered. Aiden began wolfing down her chicken fingers. "My kid, the greedy pig," Addison told the table.

"She's cute," Alex said.

"Adorable," Izzie agreed.

"You're just saying that because she might be your kid," Addison told Alex. Then she turned to Izzie. "And you are a mom, so all children become adorable."

"Not necessarily true," Izzie pointed out. "A lot of the babies in the NICU are… well, they're definitely not cute."

"Fine, you got me."

"Mommy, I finished my dinner, can we go and get my present now?"

Addison saw that they would never have any peace until Aiden found out what her gift was and so she agreed. Besides, the bill was paid and there really wasn't anything she could say against it anymore.

They walked out to Alex's car, which he unlocked and pulled a big box out of the back. Aiden's eyes widened at the sight of it. "That is one big box," she remarked as Alex handed it to her.

"Happy birthday, Aidie," he said. Aiden tore open the box to reveal an American girl doll with red hair and blue eyes.

"She looks like me!" she squealed.

Addison's face was the perfect picture of shocked. "Alex, you- you didn't have to spend that much money!" she stuttered.

"It's fine," he said.

"It's not fine! Seriously! You're spoiling her worse than I do!"

Alex shrugged and turned to Aiden. "What are you going to name her?" he asked.

"Umm…." Aiden hummed as she thought. "April."

"Pretty name," Alex commented.

"I like it too," Addison said.

"That guy is going to make one hell of a dad," Denny whispered to Izzie.

"I think he already is," Izzie replied, referring to Aiden babbling happily to Alex and Alex listening attentively.

"Mommy! I want an American Girl doll!" Amaryl whined.

"For your birthday, honey, okay?"

"But that's not for ever and ever!"

Izzie glared over at Alex. "See what you did? You turned my kid into a whiny brat."

Alex shrugged again and Aiden yawned. "We should be getting home, it's getting late," Addison remarked.

"I'll walk you to your car," Alex said.

"No, that's okay. We're parked a ways away. Go home and get some sleep," Addison replied.

"Uh-uh. I'll walk you." He and Addison seemed to have a silent argument which ended in Addison pursing her lips and saying, "Fine."

"Well, we're the other way," said Denny. "Good night and thanks for dinner."

"Night," everyone said.

"My Spidey-senses are telling me they have a Thing," Denny remarked as they walked away.

"They have a Thing," Izzie confirmed.

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

Weeks later Addison and Aiden were still in Seattle. "So we're officially moved in," Addison announced one day as she walked up to where Alex and Izzie were standing. She was referring to the fact that she had bought a small, two bedroom house and they had moved in over the weekend.

"That's good," Izzie said.

"Black hole," Alex muttered.

"What?" Addison asked.

"Nothing. You just said awhile ago that Seattle's like a black hole and you'd end up moving here. You were right."

"You remembered what I said awhile ago?" Addison wasn't sure whether to be flattered or freaked out.

"Not really. Just kind of came to me."

"Liar, you remembered," Izzie said.

"I didn't," Alex insisted.

"You did."

"Didn't."

"Did."

"Didn't."

"Did."

Addison decided that she had had enough of this juvenile conversation. "So you know what I was thinking about?" she interrupted. Alex and Izzie stopped arguing and looked at her expectantly. "I was thinking about maybe a paternity test. What do you think?"

"I think it's a great idea," Alex said.

"I think that if you're ready to accept the dad, _whoever_ he is, then I think it's probably the smartest thing you've done. Or are going to do. What tense do you put that in anyways?"

"Thanks. And do I look like I majored in English to you?"

"Noo…"

"I can't answer your question. Sorry."

"So you're going to do it?" Alex asked.

"I'm going to do it," Addison replied, taking a deep breath. "I'm going to find out who Aiden's dad is."

* * *

_next time on "Who's Your Daddy?": Paternity: Positive_

**just thought i'd put a little teaser in there. i'll try to get that up later today, but if i don't, i'll put it up tomorrow. promise.**

**-Lauren**


	5. Paternity: Positive

**a/n: look i'm actually updating when i said i would! i'm so proud of myself.**

**Just a warning: Be prepared to have your heart broken. this is THE saddest thing i've ever written. i almost cried writing it. i wish that i could say that this just happened, but i've had this chapter planned forever and based all the chapters before it off of it, sooo... i'm just going to make my apologies known before you start chasing me down the streets with pitchforks and torches.**

* * *

Addison held the three sheets of paper that held the results of the paternity test. Several times she tried to look down and answer the question that had been burning in her mind for six years. But she couldn't.

"Hey, Addison," Izzie greeted her as she walked up. "Are those the results?"

Addison thrust the papers at her. "I can't do it, you look. You tell me."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Now just tell me and get it over with."

Izzie looked down and scanned them. "Good news or bad first?"

Addison sighed. "Good."

"Well, the good news is that you weren't the pregnant Dirty Mistress." Derek: negative, thank God. "The bad news is that I don't think you're going to like who the father is."

She handed Addison the papers. Addison read them and muttered "Damn it," when she read the words _Mark Sloan: paternity: positive_. **(Yeah, I know, I hate me too.)**

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

_I should give him a chance_, Addison thought. _He _is _Aiden's dad. She deserves two parents. But how am I going to tell him? And what about Alex? Alex. I have to tell Alex._ And that's what she went and did as opposed to going and telling the father.

She found him sitting in the cafeteria alone. Wordlessly she showed him the papers. She watched as his face darkened. "Shit. I thought maybe…"

"I know. I kind of thought so too. I hoped so." He looked up sharply at that. And then she realized that her statement kind of betrayed all the feelings that had been resurfacing for the past few weeks. So she tried to correct it, because she was determined to stay friends with him, no matter what the cost. "Because, I mean, if it was Derek that would seriously suck," Somewhere along the road, she had picked up some of his Alex-isms. "And Mark is Mark." Then she noticed that now it sounded like he was the default choice and she hastened to correct that too. "And you would have been a great dad. You're going to make some lucky chick really happy when she has your kid, Alex. You're going to be an amazing dad to some really lucky little kid."

And he was sure this was true. But he could only think of one lucky chick he wanted to have his kid and one really lucky little girl who he wanted to be an amazing dad to. And they apparently belonged to someone else now. "Are you going to give him a chance or whatever?"

"I have to. I mean, he's Aiden's dad. She deserves a dad."

"Sure."

"Okay, see, that whole non-enthusiastic 'sure' thing, not helping."

"Am I supposed to be?"

"Yes, because you are my friend and that's what friends do! They help! They tell me that I'm not about to make the biggest mistake of my life!"

"You're not making the biggest mistake of your life," he echoed. But it sounded hollow, even to him. Because he thought she was making the biggest mistake of her life. But he said it because he was her friend and that's apparently what friends do, even when they think their friend is wrong.

"Thank you."

"You should go find Sloan. He should know."

"Yeah. Wait, how do you know I haven't told him yet?"

"Two ways. One, if you had told him, you wouldn't be standing here procrastinating. And two, knowing Sloan, if you had told him already, you'd probably be in an on-call room about now."

Addison blushed at the truth in that statement. "I should, um, I should go."

"Yeah, you should." And with that, she walked away.

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

Mark reacted just like she knew he would, shocked at first and then elated. He hugged her and would have kissed her if she hadn't turned her head at the last second. "I'm giving you a chance," she said. "If you want, we can try dating." She closed her eyes as she said the last word, almost as if it hurt her to say it.

"Addi, I lo-"

"Shut up, Mark. I said we can try dating. Don't start up with that again."

"But it's true, I've loved you from the moment I saw you."

"If that was true, you wouldn't have cheated on me in the first place," Addison pointed out. "Now shut up. We're going to have rules. Rule number one, you will not tell me you love me, not until you prove to me that you mean it. Rule number two, and I don't know if this would apply to you, but whatever, you will not ask me to marry you. I'm not marrying you just because we have a kid. Rule number three, if I so much as catch you flirting with another woman, I have the right to break up with you then and there. Now come on, I haven't told Aiden yet. I want you to be there when I do."

She allowed Mark to slip an arm around her waist and pull her close. They walked down the daycare where Aiden was playing House with Amaryl. "Aiden, honey, there's someone I want you to meet."

Aiden looked up. "That's Mark. I already know him."

"Aiden, he's your daddy."

Aiden stopped cold. "No he's not."

"Honey, yes he is."

"No he's not!" Tears filled the little girl's eyes. "He's not! I hate him! I want Alex!" she screamed.

"Aidie," Addison quickly dropped to her knees and hugged her daughter. "Sweetie, I know it's hard."

"I-I w-want _A-Alex_! I want Alex!" She started slamming her tiny ineffectual fists into her mother's shoulder, sobbing, and repeating herself. She refused to be consoled and finally Addison just did what Aiden wanted and sent Alex a page. _Aiden. Daycare. Come please?_

Two minutes later, he came running into the daycare. "What? What's wrong with Aiden?"

"I'm sorry. It's just that she wants you and she won't stop crying and I've tried everything," Addison sighed.

"It's okay," he said and picked up the sobbing little girl. She snuggled into his hold and stuck her finger in her mouth, something she only did when she was tired or upset. "What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Mommy says that Mawk's my daddy but ee's nawt," she explained, keeping her finger placed securely in her mouth.

"Your mommy's telling the truth, Aidie."

"No she's not! I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!" she screamed and began sobbing again.

"Aidie, look at me. Look at me." She obeyed. "First of all, I completely agree with you, I hate him too," he whispered. "But if he's going to make your mommy happy, isn't he a good thing?" Aiden nodded, but he didn't notice because he was looking at Addison. "And we want your mommy happy, right?" Aiden nodded again. "So how about we support whatever decision she makes, okay? How about we don't care, as long as she's happy?" His eyes never broke contact with Addison's, which were looking almost guilty. Mark, who had been standing awkwardly in the background, looked on jealously.

"Okay, Alex. But I still like you better."

"Thanks Aidie."

"And I'm _not_ calling him Daddy," she declared stubbornly.

"You don't have to call him Daddy," Addison intervened.

"Good, cuz I won't."

"Stubborn kid," Alex commented.

"She _is_ my kid," Addison replied. "Thanks, Alex. Really. You didn't have to do that. Especially not now."

"It's okay," Alex answered. "I wanted to. She's a great kid, Addison; you did a good job with her. Good luck with her and Mark." Then he turned and walked out of the daycare, leaving the new family behind.

* * *

**did you like it?**

**-Lauren**


	6. What's A Little Unhappiness?

**short i know, but enjoy! off to disneyland, but i'll be back soon!**

* * *

For the next few weeks Addison, Mark, and Aiden were actually some semblance of happy. Aiden still refused to call Mark anything with the word "Dad" in it, but she did allow him to talk to her, which was a big improvement from the first week. She was so stubborn that she refused to talk to him or Addison for a week. It made Mark sad, sure, but it broke Addison's heart.

One day Addison got a little time off and decided to go visit Aiden in the daycare. When she got there, however, she found that Aiden was otherwise occupied. Alex was sitting with her and Amaryl, listening to the two of the babble on. Addison beckoned the woman in charge over. "Alex is here?" she asked.

"Oh yeah," the woman said, as if it were no big deal. "He's in here everyday, when he can find the time. Aiden loves him."

"Oh."

"Oh crap!" the lady nearly yelled. "Jimmy! Don't put the paste in your mouth!"

Addison walked over to Aiden, Amaryl, and Alex. "Hey," she said quietly.

"Mommy!" Aiden cried, wrapping her arms around her mother's leg. "Look! Alex is here!"

"I can see that, sweetie," Addison said and smiled awkwardly at Alex. They hadn't really talked in the past couple weeks and Addison knew they were drifting apart and she hated it.

"How come you never talk to Alex anymore?" Aiden asked innocently, as her mother pried her of her leg and sat down.

Addison's eyes widened at that. "I still- I still talk to Alex."

"No you don't, you only say big, long words that make no sense. But you never talk about anything except the big, long words." Addison gathered that the big, long words were medical terms. "Why don't you talk to him? _I_ talk to him all the time."

"I guess we just don't have enough time…" Addison trailed off, hoping that would be enough to satisfy her daughter,

"Yeah, Aidie, we don't see each other a lot," Alex stepped in. Addison smiled at him gratefully. "But I'd love to talk to her if she could find time," he said, never looking away from Addison.

"I-" Addison suddenly became aware of just how close she and Alex were sitting, leaning in to hear Aiden. She swallowed and continued. "I'd like that," she said, trying to keep her composure and pretending that she didn't want to lean in that extra couple inches and let him meet her halfway. "Um, Aiden's spending the night at Izzie and Denny's Saturday and Mark's doing something with Derek. Joe's?"

"Eight work for you?" Alex asked. Addison found herself wondering if it all was just some show for Aiden.

"Perfectly."

"I'll see you then," Alex said and got up to leave.

"O-okay."

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

Addison was a little early to their "date". She sat at the bar, swirling her drink, when Alex came in. He didn't think he'd ever seen anything quite so beautiful. But he ignored that feeling and walked over to the bar. "Hey," he greeted her as he sat down.

"Hi."

They sat in an awkward silence until Addison said, "Thanks. For everything, I mean. For taking care of Aiden and all that."

"No problem."

"I mean you really don't have to, what with…" She wasn't sure whether she should bring up Mark so she just finished, "you know."

"Mark?" he asked. "Screw Mark. Aiden's a great kid, I like her." They sat in more silence, until he asked, "Are you happy?"

"Am I happy?" Addison repeated. "What kind of question is that?"

"The kind that you need to answer."

Well, what's she supposed to say to that? Kind of lie and say yes? Say no and partially tell the truth? So she kind of lies and after a considerable silence she says, "Yeah. I am."

"Good. Stay happy," he told her. It's kind of topped off his list of priorities now, keep Addison happy. If she's happy with Mark, he's not ever going to do anything to break that up.

That's why when he looks over her shoulder and sees Mark flirting with a blond twenty-something, he says nothing and tries to keep Addison's attention towards him. He's not happy about it, but what's a little unhappiness if she's happy?

* * *

**reviews would be beyond loverly!**

**-Lauren**


	7. A Father's Not Necessarily A Dad

**ok, so i have a feeling that you're going to love this chapter... i do.**

**even though it is my goal in life, i have not yet achieved ownership of grey's anatomy.**

* * *

Addison would have been happier and enjoying herself if Alex hadn't seemed intent on something over her shoulder. "What's so interesting behind me?" she asked sarcastically, going to turn around.

"Nothing!" he said two seconds too soon. She looked at him with one raised eyebrow and turned around anyway. Her eyes scanned the bar and she made a strangled noise that only Alex could hear as she spotted the thing he had worked so hard to keep her from spotting. "Are you okay?" he asked anxiously.

She swallowed and took a deep breath, then plastered a fake smile on her face, quite reminiscent of the one she had worn years ago when she had first come to Seattle. "I will be in a moment. Excuse me."

She strode over to Mark purposefully. He had his back to her, so he didn't see her coming. She smiled her fake smile at the blond, "Hi, I'm Addison," she said, sticking out her hand. Mark visibly paled.

"Michaela," the girl replied, looking very confused.

"Can I borrow my boyfriend for a second? It'll only take a moment. I don't have much to say to him. I'll bring him right back, I swear, and then you can go have your fun," Addison asked politely, the same grin on her face.

The poor girl looked scared out of her mind. "Uh… sure. Bye!" she said and ran away as fast as her Coach knockoff shoes would carry her.

"She seems nice," Addison commented mildly.

"I, uh, I…"

"Mark, don't even try," Addison advised him. "Oh well, at least I learned something." He looked at her inquiringly. "Once a manwhore, always a manwhore," she enlightened him.

"Addison, it's not-"

"What it looks like?" Addison finished. "See, I think it is. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I remember saying that if I so much as caught you flirting, that I had the right to break up with you then and there. Well, I'm exercising that right. Don't worry, I won't try to stop you from seeing Aiden, but it's her call and I kind of doubt that she's going to want to see you if she doesn't have to. No offense, but she doesn't like you all that much. Bye Mark."

For the first time in years, she felt completely sure of what she was doing as she walked away from Mark and towards Alex. "Do you want to go home?" he asked as she walked up.

"No, I'm okay," Addison said.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine," Addison insisted stubbornly.

They sat in silence and Alex wasn't sure how to break it. Addison sat facing straight forward, blinking twice as much as normal. "Addison-" Alex started.

"Look, could you just not say I told you so? I know I set myself up for this."

"I wasn't going to."

"Guys are stupid," Addison pouted. "All they do is hurt me."

"I wouldn't hurt you," Alex said sincerely.

Addison smiled sadly. "I know you wouldn't. You're great. God," she sighed in frustration, "Why couldn't you have been Aiden's dad?"

Alex didn't know what to say to that. "Uh-"

"I should forgive him," Addison said.

"No! No, you shouldn't!" Alex contradicted her immediately.

"Aiden needs a dad," Addison replied.

Alex didn't get why she was so hung up on the dad thing. "No one said that her dad has to be her biological one," he pointed out.

Addison looked over at him sharply. Her eyes searched his face, looking for the meaning behind his statement. "What?"

"No one said her dad had to be her biological one," he repeated. "You know I'm a better dad than Sloan."

"What?" Addison was so confused and elated.

"Just let me buy you dinner or something."

"What?" It seemed that was the only word that she could say.

"Look, I love Aiden, she's an awesome kid. And here's the thing, I have a Thing for her mom. Always have."

Addison looked even more shocked, if that were possible. "But… the supply closet…" she protested weakly, referring to his last words to her before she left Seattle.

"I lied," he shrugged. "I was an ass."

"I…"

"Look, I know that I've sent so many mixed signals to you and I know that I've hurt you. But just believe me when I say that I'm interested in you and that I never want to hurt you again."

"Alex-"

"Addison," he interrupted. "Please."

A half an hour ago she probably would have refused him, too afraid of everything, of what might happen, to do what she wanted. She would have let him down gently and forgiven Mark, all because of her preconceived notion that Aiden needed her biological father. But it wasn't half an hour ago. It was now and now she realized that a father wasn't necessarily always a dad. Now she realized that even though Aiden was still her top priority, her own happiness should come soon after. And that's why when she saw that he was leaning in slightly; she closed the gap between their lips.

"I'm going to take that as a yes," Alex said happily. Addison nodded. Then her face looked a little stricken.

"What are we going to tell Aiden?" she asked anxiously.

"The truth," Alex replied easily.

"And what's that?" Addison inquired.

"That Mark's an asshole, but we won't use that exact phrase, and that I love you and I'm not going anywhere."

"You- you love me?"

"It hasn't been totally obvious? I've loved you since about a week after I met you."

"What about that first week?"

"I wanted to kill you," Alex stated frankly.

"Oh. I don't… I don't know what to say," she admitted.

"Don't say anything. I don't want you to say anything until you absolutely mean it."

Right at that moment, she probably could have said it back and meant it, but she didn't, in case he thought she was being pressured into it. "Thank- thank you."

"No problem. Do you want a ride home?" he asked.

"I'd love one."

That was how they ended up stumbling into her bedroom, tugging at each other's clothes, thankful that Aiden wasn't home.

* * *

**this is either the second or third to last chapter, probably the third to last. just a warning.**

**reviews?**

**-Lauren**


	8. Perfect

**a/n: it's a short chapter, but it's cute, in my opinion. i'll try to get you the next chapter soon!**

**disclaimer: it's STILL not mine!**

* * *

"Hi Mommy!" Aiden exclaimed as Izzie walked her through the open door.

"Hey sweetie," Addison replied as she bent down and hugged her daughter.

"You look tired," Izzie remarked.

"Yeah," Addison yawned. "I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Mark?" Izzie asked knowingly.

"Sort of… Mark's… Mark. And I'll only have to deal with him at work from now on."

"What?"

"Let's just say it definitely wasn't Derek Mark was with last night."

"Oh. You must feel horrible! You must have stayed up all night tossing and turning."

Addison blushed. She had definitely stayed up all night, just not because of anything _Mark_ did. _Alex_, though, Alex was a different story. "Not exactly," she said sheepishly.

"Then why are you so-" Izzie's question was answered as Alex chose that moment to walk out of Addison's bedroom and into the kitchen, greeting Izzie, Addison, Amaryl, and Aiden on the way. "Oh. Well. That makes sense."

"It makes sense?" Addison asked, confused.

"Yeah. You two were destined, you just couldn't see it."

"Mommy? Why is Alex here?" Aiden asked innocently. "Did he spend the night?"

"Um…" Addison struggled to answer the questions that were so innocent, but had such a wrong meaning behind them, while Izzie started cracking up. "Yeah. He did."

"What about Mark?" Aiden asked. For a six year old, she was incredibly perceptive.

"He's not going to be here anymore."

"Is he not my daddy anymore?" Aiden inquired.

"Um… well… he's still your daddy, but he and I… we're not…"

Izzie, who decided that her friend had suffered enough at the hands of her oblivious child, jumped in, simplifying the whole situation. "Alex is your new daddy Aiden."

"Well that's one way of putting it," Addison stated, stunned at the frankness of the statement.

Aiden's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"Um… yeah," Addison.

"Really, really?" Aiden asked.

Addison smiled at her little girl's enthusiasm. "Really, really," she affirmed.

A grin graced the little girl's face. "Can I call _him _Daddy?"

"I'm sure he wouldn't mind. But you'll have to ask him for yourself."

"Ask me what?" Alex said from the doorway.

Aiden ran up to him and tugged on his hand. "Can I call you Daddy?"

"Yeah. Sure."

"Okay Daddy!" Alex looked incredibly flattered and Aiden looked thrilled.

"We're just going to go…" Izzie said, feeling a little out of place in what was clearly a family moment, and pulled her daughter out of the house.

"Daddy?"

It took Alex a second to respond, since he was still not used to the title, but eventually he looked down and asked, "What?"

"Do you love Mommy?"

Alex looked straight at Addison. "Yeah. I do. A lot."

"Does Mommy love you?"

Alex tore his eyes away from the love of his life and looked down at Aiden. "Um… I don't… I don't know."

Aiden turned to her mother, who had been watching the scene unfold, smiling. "Well, do you, Mommy?"

Addison looked a little shocked. She was quiet for a moment, obviously mulling things over. If she said no, for one, she wouldn't really be telling the whole truth, and also, how awful would that be to say? But if she said yes, Alex might she was being forced to say it and might not believe her. And then she thinks to herself, how about listening to her heart? That might tell her what she was thinking. So she does. She listens. "Yeah," she said before she lost her courage or over thought it. "I do." She looked over at Alex and found him grinning. "I do," she repeated.

"And I love you guys!" Aiden exclaimed. Addison bent down and picked her up.

"Perfect," Alex said, wrapping an arm around Addison's waist.

"Perfect," Addison repeated and found it was the truth.

* * *

**Syllogism**

**a) reviews make me happy b) i write more when i'm happy. therefore c) reviews make me write more.**

**;-)**

**-Lauren**


	9. Lukewarm Feet

**a/n: i've got one more chapter, that's kind of like an epilogue-y thing and then i'm done with this story. so i hope you enjoy this.**

**and can i just say that i've got a stupid song stuck in my head (lullaby by the dixie chicks) which a CERTAIN PERSON reading this got stuck in my head in the first place. so to that person, i blame you.**

**once again, it's not mine**

* * *

They were married two months later, after what would have been a whirlwind romance if it hadn't been six years in the making.

The ceremony was beautiful, white roses everywhere. They were married in a small chapel on September tenth, precisely six months after Addison's return to Seattle. It was small, only Alex's mom, Addison's father (her mother had died the year before), Richard and Adele, Savvy and Weiss, Derek and Meredith, Christina and Burke, and a couple of Alex's old college friends. Izzie was Addison's maid of honor, and Callie, who had flown in with George from Miami where they were now living, Naomi and Miranda were her other bridesmaids. Denny and Alex had become closer over the course of time and Denny was Alex's best man. Aiden and Amaryl were flower girls, one because Addison wanted them to be, and two, they didn't do anything without the other. The only person absent was Mark, but he hadn't even been invited, as per Addison's request. He hadn't even attempted to talk to Aiden and Addison figured she had a right to refuse to invite him to her wedding.

While she was walking down the aisle she looked so happy, so confident that she was making the right decision, that Alex could hardly believe that the night before she had almost called the whole thing off.

----

_Aiden was at Izzie and Denny's, where she would be spending the next few nights, and the bachelor/ bachelorette parties were over and done with. Alex was sitting in his and Addison's bed watching TV. She came from the bathroom where she had been brushing her teeth and sat down next to him, laying her head on his chest while he wrapped his arms around her. "Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked, obviously referring to the wedding._

"_Do you not want to?" he asked her back instead of answering that loaded question._

"_I- I don't know," she answered truthfully. That was their thing; in times where honesty was of the utmost importance, they had to be completely truthful._

"_Do you want to call it off?" _

"_I don't know," she answered._

"_Hate to pressure you, Adds, but you kind of need to make a decision like now."_

"_You're okay if I do?"_

"_As long as you don't go running off to some distant country and fall in love with another guy, then yeah, I'm okay with it. My only condition is that if you call it off, you have to stay with me, because I'm not letting you go, not again."_

"_You won't hate me?"_

"_As long as you're happy. If you're not ready then we can always get married later. And even if you decide later tomorrow that you are ready, there's always Vegas."_

"_One, I am not getting married in Vegas," she informed him. "Callie may be able to embrace the trashy, but I am not. And secondly," she said and takes a deep breath. "I'm not calling it off. This wedding is happening whether you want it to or not."_

"_I want it to; you're the one with the cold feet."_

"_I am not. I do not have cold feet."_

"_You have lukewarm feet."_

"_What?" Addison laughed._

"_Well, I figure that if you can have cold feet, then if you kind of have cold feet then you have lukewarm feet. I don't know. Don't listen to me."_

"_I rarely do," she smirked._

"_Funny," he retorted. "But let's see how funny you think it is now!" he exclaimed, pinned her to the bed and promptly began to tickle her. She shrieked. "Shh!" he hissed. "It's like two in the morning and you're screaming like a madwoman."_

"_Not my fault," she panted. "All yours."_

"_Well, you're the one screaming. I didn't force you to shriek."_

"_Hey Alex?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Shut up and kiss me."_

_He gladly did._

----

The vows were said, the rings exchanged, the first dance danced. Addison was sitting happily on her husband's lap, not caring about the looks her father kept sending her, the ones that told her she had a perfectly good chair not a foot away. He had never really, truly forgiven her for the divorce, Derek was the son he never had, but it was her wedding and she would sit in her husband's lap if she felt like it, damn it.

"My dad's glaring at us again," she commented.

"Addison?"

"Yeah?"

"Seriously, I don't care. I mean, I care that your dad likes me and all, but I don't care if he doesn't. I'm your choice, not his. You chose me, he didn't. I get it. As long as you're sitting right where you are, I'm good."

Addison pinched herself. "Ow," she winced.

"Now why the hell would you go and do something like that?"

"You're too good to be true," she informed him. "I have to be dreaming. I'm going to wake up back in the brownstone in New York to another day of being ignored by my husband."

"Not to my knowledge," Alex replied. "And you're not going to be ignored by your husband."

"And you would know."

"Well, yeah… I am said husband. I would know."

"You can't possibly be said husband. I don't deserve said husband."

"You deserve said husband," he contradicted her and kissed her.

"Aww! George! Look at the newlyweds!" Callie exclaimed happily.

Addison pulled away and glanced up at her friend. "Hi," she said.

"You're glowing," Callie told her. "She's glowing," Callie told George.

"Um… thank you?"

"It's a good thing, don't worry. It means you made the right choice."

"I never doubted it," Addison protested.

"You did," Alex disagreed.

"Did not." She could block out anything she wanted to, and she was choosing to block out her "lukewarm feet".

"You did."

"I did not!"

"You did."

"Okay, one, you two bicker too much to be newlyweds. You sound like you've been married for twenty years, not an hour. And two, Alex, why would even want to remember that she had doubts? I'm just curious."

"I don't," he said, "I just want to be right for once."

Callie snorted. "Oh, get used to being wrong. Get very used to being wrong."

"Great. Can't wait," Alex said sarcastically.

"Oh don't worry," Addison consoled him. "You're not wrong all the time, just most of it."

"Good to know. And this time, I'm right."

"No you're not."

"Yeah I am."

"Are you two even capable of having a mature conversation?" Callie asked.

"Yes," Addison said at the same time Alex said no.

"Sorry, Addie, but I think Alex is right in this one," Callie said.

Addison gasped, her mouth hanging open comically. "I'm not talking to you anymore!" she exclaimed. "You're supposed to take my side against my husband!" The statement would have been a lot more effective if she hadn't burst out laughing.

"Okay, you've become Scary-Happy Addison. I'm leaving now," Callie said. "Have fun."

"Mommy! Daddy!" Aiden called as she ran up. Addison picked her up, so they were both sitting on Alex. "Mommy, can I see your rings again?" Aiden was fascinated by the glittering bands. Addison laughed and held out her hand. "They're so pretty!"

"Aren't they?"

"I like this one," Aiden said, pointing to her engagement ring.

"Your daddy did a good job, didn't he?"

Aiden turned around even further. "You did a good job, Daddy."

"Thanks, Aidie."

"Okay, well, bye guys!" Aiden exclaimed, wiggling out of her mother's grasp.

"That child is hyperactive," Alex commented.

"I know. I love it."

"I love her."

"I know you do. You know what kind of surprised me about you?"

"What?"

"You're a really great dad."

"It's surprising?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, you were the one who slept with me then screamed at me. It's not exactly the stuff of dreams. I kind of really hated you."

"I don't blame you."

"Good."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Sometimes, it takes you painful years to get there, but in the end, life gets you where you want to be.

* * *

**reviews?**

**-Lauren**


	10. Survive

**a/n: a nice long last chapter. how sad. i'm not incredibly happy with this chapter, but i'll live and you will too.**

**for the last time, it ain't mine**

* * *

Here's the thing, time moves on, whether or not you want it to. Time marched steadily on until Addison and Alex were dealing with a full blown teenager. At sixteen years old, Aiden was gorgeous (how could she not be?), smart, and way too stubborn. She loved English, drama and she claimed to love her boyfriend, Tuck Bailey. She hated surgery, she hated hospitals, and at times she claimed to hate her parents.

This was one of those times. "I hate you!" she screamed, slamming the door to her room. "I'm going to go live with Mark! _He'd_ let me go to the movies with my friends!" This was one of her more common threats.

Addison sat down at the kitchen table, rubbing her temples. Alex walked behind her chair and started massaging her back. "She doesn't mean it," he told her, correctly reading into her slumped posture that she was hurting from the "I hate you".

"I know," she replied. Despite her words, tears glistened in her eyes. "But it doesn't help." She looked so tired. It was one of the few times Addison actually looked her age, when the lines on her face deepened and her eyes became tired.

"I know," he said, pulling her up and into a hug. "Don't cry," he pleaded. "I hate it when you cry."

"I know." They stood there for a minute, Addison's head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat, letting it comfort her. Then she randomly asked, "Do you think we've spoilt her?"

"What?"

"Is she such a brat because we've spoilt her too badly?"

"Addie, she's a brat because she's a teenager, not because we've spoiled her."

"It's just that-"

"Addie, she is a great kid. She's just going through a phase."

"I know that, it's just that-"

"Addison, it is _not _your fault, it isn't my fault, it's no one's fault."

The both looked up as two nine year olds walked into the kitchen. They had brown hair and blue eyes and Addison's fair complexion. "We're home!" the girl nearly shrieked.

"Mom, what's wrong?" the boy asked, concerned.

Addison quickly brushed away her tears. "Nothing," she assured him. "How was school, Jake?"

"It was okay," he said.

"Only okay?" she asked, raising her eyebrow in her trademark style.

"It was more than okay," the little girl said, hugging her dad. "It was great. We had an assembly on selling magazines and we got to see the prizes. They're _so _cool!"

"Lacy, why don't we give Jake a chance to talk?" Alex asked her.

"Why? He'll just say it was okay some more and then you'd _never_ get to hear about our day."

Alex looked at his son. "Jake, how was _your_ day?"

"It was okay."

Addison dropped her head into her hands, struggling not to laugh. "What, Mom?" Jake asked.

"N-nothing," she sputtered. "Nice call, Lace."

"I _told _you. Where's Aiden? I want to tell her about the magazine assembly."

"I don't think that's such a great idea, sweetie. Aiden's grumpy today," Alex said.

"Understatement of the century," Addison muttered.

"Oh. Okay," Lacy said. She idolized her older sister and hated when she yelled at her. She knew that "grumpy" was code for "stay the heck away from that girl if you like your head where it is". "I'm gonna go do homework," she announced. "Come on Jake."

Together the twins walked out of the room. Addison and Alex watched them go. Addison marveled at how tall they were getting. "It seems like just yesterday Lacy was saying she was going to be Cinderella when she grew up," Addison commented.

"And Jake was going to be a firefighter."

"Isn't that what he still says?"

"Well, yeah, but…"

"I miss those days," Addison sighs.

"I know. Me too."

Unbeknownst to them, Aiden had crept into the kitchen. Although she was subject to loud, messy blow ups, she was a good kid and a pacifist by nature. As much as she loved arguing, she hated anger and hate. She wrapped her arms around her mother and whispered, "I'm sorry, Mom."

"It's okay," Addison said, kissing her daughter's cheek. She never could stay mad at her. She was her little girl, always had been, always would be.

"Sorry, Daddy," Aiden said, moving to hug her father. Although she had long since stopped calling Addison "Mommy", she had never grown out of calling him "Daddy".

"Don't do that again," he whispered in her ear. "It really hurts your mom."

Aiden looked down guiltily. "I won't. Promise."

They went through this ritual at least once a month and her promise was always broken, but it couldn't be helped. The girl was doomed with the tempers of Addison Forbes Montgomery-Karev and Mark Sloan. Alex understood. His own kids didn't fare much better.

"Stop whispering," Addison ordered. "I feel like you're talking about me."

Aiden started whispering nonsense into her dad's ear, whisper-yelling "Mom" every once in awhile and throwing furtive glances at her. Alex played along. Addison got up and walked over to them, playfully swatting both of them. "Stop," she commanded.

"Make me," Alex challenged.

"Gladly," Addison replied coolly. Alex moved over to her and kissed her.

"Ew, gross!" Aiden moaned. "I can't see! I'm blind!" she yelled dramatically. "God, just go into your bedroom and shut the door if you're going to do that," she ordered. Alex looked as if he was seriously considering it. "Okay, double ew! Ugh!" Aiden grunted and walked off. Alex threw a sidelong glance at Addison. Their room was on the ground floor while the kids' rooms were on the top and on the other side of the house for precisely this reason. The door to their bedroom was closed and locked as they walked through it. When Lacey and Jake asked where their parents were Aiden replied that they were taking a nap even as she grimaced, knowing what was going on behind that closed door.

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

Every Friday the entire family would get together with the Duquettes and the Shepherds, the remainder of the original staff from years ago. Addison always loved this tradition, it filled the house with noise and laughter. It was tradition they would keep even after the kids had gone off to college.

"Alex?" she yelled into the living room from the kitchen where she was making pasta. "Can you run to the store?"

"I'm not running there," Alex replied as he walked into the room. Addison stared at his blatant no. "I'll drive, but I'm not running. What do you need?" Addison swatted him and returned to the stove. "See, for that I should just not go," he said.

"Eggs," Addison talked over him. "I forgot eggs and Izzie needs eggs for cookies. And unless you go to the store and get those eggs then we won't have cookies. And I know how much you love those cookies."

"They are amazing," Meredith put in from the counter where she was making the salad, the extent of her culinary skills, even after four kids.

"I know," Izzie said smugly.

"Hey, Iz, can you go ask Denny when the steaks are going to be done?" Addison asked. This was how the dinner worked. The guys rotated grilling something, Addison cooked pasta, Meredith made salad, and Izzie did dessert. Aiden and Amaryl watched over the younger kids, the youngest of whom was Millie at five years old and Derek and Meredith's fourth, and gossiped. The other kids ran around and stirred up troubled.

"'Scuse me, coming through!" Lacey yelled as she ran through the kitchen, away from Matt Shepherd.

"Lacey, don't run in the house!" Addison called after her, but her cries fell upon deaf ears.

"Matthew Shepherd, calm down!" Meredith yelled at her son, who also didn't listen.

As hard as the parents tried to exert some sort of power and control over their collective eight children, Friday nights seemed to have an effect that made any control the children's.

"I'm going," Alex announced as he grabbed his car keys. "Be back," he promised, kissing Addison on the cheek.

"Drive safe. Don't get in a car crash. I will kill you if you do," she threatened as she always did.

"No worries, Adds."

He returned safely, as he always did, gave Izzie the eggs, and returned outside to listen to a conversation that didn't involve what scrub nurse Mark Sloan was currently sleeping with.

"Dinner!" Addison called minutes later.

"Everyone please note the wonderfully tossed salad," Meredith said when everyone was seated.

"And the beautifully prepared pasta," Addison added.

"And the cookies!" Izzie exclaimed, "Don't forget the cookies."

"The salad looks great, Mer," Derek complimented his wife.

"And the cookies are going to be great," Denny added.

"Yeah, can't wait for those cookies," Alex added. Addison slapped him playfully when he was silent. "And the pasta. Doesn't the pasta look great, Aidie?"

"Pasta looks great, Mom," Aiden agreed. She was used to this sort of thing, it happened every night at dinner. Sometimes she even said it before her dad asked.

"Thank you," Addison said graciously. Alex leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Aidie and Addie," Derek said randomly. Everyone over fifteen stopped and stared at him. Matthew poked Lacey and Jake poked Theresa, imitating his idol. Theresa swatted Jake and Lacey swatted Matthew. Millie tried talking to her older sister Christie, whose real name was Christina (after a long struggle, Derek finally agreed to let one of his kids be named after Meredith's person), but who was too busy trying to look grown-up, and listen to the conversation the adults were having, to talk back.

"Yeah. What about it?" Addison asked.

"I just never noticed the similarity," Derek said.

"Oh my God, Derek," Izzie groaned.

"Seriously," Meredith added. "You're a moron."

"Ah, Mer, I love you too."

"Shut up."

After dinner the adults sat around the table while Aiden and Amaryl put on a movie for the kids to watch.

"So… how's it going in neuro?" Addison asked the Shepherds.

"Fine. In neonatal?" Meredith answered. Meredith seemed a little stiff tonight Addison noticed, like she was upset about something. She had done the bantering thing well and she had never yelled or anything, but she seemed off, like she was trying too hard or something. In fact, something seemed off about the whole night. Her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out what it was. Then she realized. The Shepherds, normally the most touchy-feely couple in the bunch, hadn't touched once all night.

"Fine. Um, don't take this the wrong way or think I'm being rude or anything, but is everything all right between you?" Addison inquired, glancing between Meredith and Derek.

Meredith glanced around to make sure that none of the children were around. "No," she answered. "Derek told me something today and I'm not sure if I can forgive him."

"Derek, what'd you do this time?" Izzie moaned.

"Oh, he did plenty," Meredith answered for him. "He slept with Addison."

Everyone looked at Derek and Addison. Addison found something in her wine glass very interesting and Derek stared straight ahead. Alex, who had been holding Addison's hand under the table, drew his hand back. It caused Addison to look up and realize how Meredith had just made it sound. "Years ago!" she explained to Alex. "You knew about it, I told you. She doesn't mean now, I haven't slept with anyone except you since the first time we slept together, I swear." She grabbed his hand, not wanting him to be upset with her. "I know I don't have a stellar record in the monogamy thing, but please believe me," she pleaded.

His face remained impassive for a moment, during which Addison's bottom lip started to tremble, a sign that she was about to start crying, then looked at her. "Always," he said.

Addison smiled at him and turned to Meredith. "I'm really sorry. We were drunk and I don't even remember what made it seem like a good idea at the time."

"I'm not mad about that," Meredith insisted, "I'm mad that no one thought, 'Oh, maybe we should tell Meredith. Maybe Meredith has a right to know. Maybe Meredith might want to know that she was cheated on, that her husband slept with his ex-wife after they split.' I just want to know, _why didn't anyone tell me?_"

"I left it up to him," Addison replied, nodding at Derek, placing the blame away from her, "I figured it was his decision."

Derek opened his mouth to explain, but Meredith said, "We will talk about this later. For now, I'm not talking to you and we are going to get the kids and go home." She stormed out of the room and Derek trailed after her.

"They'll make up," Izzie said. "They always do."

"They have to," Addison agreed.

"They will," Alex said confidently.

They did.

_**GAGAGAGAGAGAGA**_

Two years later, Addison and Alex were helping Aiden settle into her dorm room at UCLA. Addison did an admirable job of staying composed until the time came to say goodbye. "You have everything?" she asked nervously.

"Yes, Mom."

"You have your phone?"

"That would be included in everything, so yes."

"And you have both my number and your dad's?"

"Yes, Mom."

"And you'll call soon?"

"Yes, Mom."

"And you have Naomi's number?"

"Yes, Mother."

"And you'll call her if you need anything?"

"Mother! Yes! Okay?"

"Right, sorry. It's just…"

"I know," Aiden said. "I'll miss you too." She hugged her mom one last time and looked over at her dad. "I assume you want one too?" He didn't respond, so she moved over to him anyways. "Bye, Daddy, love you."

"Love you too, Aidie. Stay out of trouble."

"Always! Love you, Mom."

"Enough for one last hug?"

Aiden rolled her eyes. "One last hug." She opened her arms and let her mother hug her again. "Okay, and now you need to go if you're going to make your flight. I love you both. Bye!" She kissed both her parents and shoved them towards their rental car.

As they climbed into the car and Alex started the engine, Addison turned to him. "She's grown up."

"She's grown up," he agreed.

"When did that happen?"

"I don't know."

"She'll be okay, though, right?"

"She'll be fine. Addie, you need to stop freaking out. She's ready."

"I know, but-"

"She's going to be fine. And we're going to fly home, pick up Jake and Lacey and take care of them, okay?"

Addison nodded. It was times like these when she was so glad she had Alex. He was her rock, the one who saw the rational side to things, the one who comforted her when she needed it. There was no way that she could have possibly sent Aiden off to college without him, she would have broken down. "I can do this," she said.

"_We _can do this. You're not alone, Addie."

Looking at his face, she knew he meant it. She'd never be alone, not ever again. It felt good. "I love you," she said.

"I love you too."

"Let's go home."

If asked what one thing she learned in her life was, Addison knew what she'd answer; when things get tough, find someone to take care of you, it's the only way to survive. Alex took care of her and she took care of him. They'd survive.

* * *

**ah, i'm going to miss aiden. oh well, all good things must come to an end. so for the last time,**

**reviews?**

**-Lauren**


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